1. Field
Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a refrigerator having a direct-cooling type ice maker directly contacted by a refrigerant pipe.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, a refrigerator is an apparatus configured to store foods fresh by having a storage compartment capable of storing foods and a cooling air supplying apparatus capable of supplying a cool air to the storage compartment. A refrigerator may be provided with an ice maker capable of generating ice.
Methods for cooling an ice maker include an indirect-cooling type configured in a way to cool an ice maker by guiding a cool air which is generated at an evaporator at an outside of an ice making compartment through a transport duct to the ice making compartment, and a direct-cooling type configured in a way to directly cool an ice maker with a cool air at an inside of an ice making compartment by additionally installing a heat exchanger at an inside of the ice making compartment.
In particular, as one of the direct-cooling methods, a refrigerant pipe is configured to make direct contact with an ice making tray of an ice maker so that the ice making tray may serve as a heat exchanger without having a separate heat exchanger.
The ice making method using the direct-cooling type ice maker, which is configured to serve as a heat exchanger by having a refrigerant pipe directly contacted to the ice maker, may perform a cooling at a faster speed than other ice making methods. However, a process in disposing and fixing a portion of the refrigerant pipe at an inside an ice making compartment in order for the refrigerant pipe to make contact with an ice making tray is needed, as a frost may form frequently as a result of the difference in temperature at an inside of the ice making compartment.